Life
by half-pint4
Summary: AU. Garrus is one of the top detectives in C-Sec, and the most rebellious. As punishment for his reckless methods he is being given a partner, ex-Alliance Marine Jane Shepard. Underneath the lies, and conspiracy, will the two be able to work as partners?
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue: Breaking News**

Khalisah Bint Sinan Al-Jilani of the Westerlund News was setting up another interview for the Shepard project. The reporter got a lead a few weeks ago that the infamous Jane Shepard of the Systems Alliance was being freed from all charges that landed her in a maximum security space prison. Since then, Khalisah had been working her butt off getting interviews from all of Shepard's past associates. This project was a follow up piece to the main interview with Shepard herself. Ms. Al-Jilani had her eyes on the coveted Purningali Award, the sacred grail of galactic journalism.

So far, all the extra leg work was paying off; she was able to get an interview with Ashley Williams, Alliance Marine and ex-squad partner of Shepard before the Akuze mission. Up until the point where Khalisah had come in person to Eden Prime, the prickly gunnery chief had been avoiding her calls. Just yesterday Khalisah had met up with Shepard's advocate, Liara T'Soni, to ask questions about Shepard's settlement. She even had a quickie interview with the doctor of the space prison where Shepard reportedly had spent a lot of her time. Presently, Khalisah's latest search had landed her a big catch, the man who had known Jane Shepard better than anyone else at the time of her trial: her ex-fiancé.

The reporter smiled at the nervous Alliance Marine. She was finally able to corner the man during his shore leave on the Citadel. Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko of the cruiser Cairo stood shifting his weight from foot to foot as Khalisah set up her extranet bot to record. The bot's white light put Kaidan in the center of the machine's lens. He stopped fidgeting once the light turned on, but the nervous hunch in his shoulders was still present as Khalisah began the interview. Khalisah knew she had to start slow and easy—just like with all the others—before getting to the hot questions. Positioned next to the bot—conveniently off screen—she started asking Alenko questions.

"Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, Alliance Sentinel, and past fiancé to Jane Shepard. Some would say that the latter has earned you more limelight than the former."

Kaidan tried to keep his voice level as he said, "I didn't join the Alliance for fame ma'am."

"But it was through the Alliance Marines that you were able to form your relationship with Jane Shepard, correct?" Khalisah tried to keep her smile open and pleasant. She found that people she interviewed got nervous when she allowed one of her grins on her face; something about showing off too much teeth.

"Yes, Shepard and I met each other on shore leave. Since we were stationed in different areas of the galaxy fraternization wasn't so much of a problem." Kaidan paused, allowing a small smile as his gaze settled slightly to the left of the camera's center.

"When we got engaged my CO congratulated me."

"Were you engaged with Shepard when she was on trial for the murder of her squad on Akuze?"

Kaidan's eyes snapped to focus and his smile disappeared.

"Yes."

"Is it true that you waited two years after Shepard was pronounced guilty and sent to prison, to break off your engagement with her?"

The Staff Lieutenant's body went rigid in reaction to the blunt and personal question. Internally Khalisah crowed with success as Alenko's bedroom eyes widened in shock. Her audience would eat up the emotional conflict displayed on the soldier's face. Kaidan swallowed before answering, his voice slightly rougher than it was a moment before.

"Yes."

"You thought Shepard, your fiancé of over a year, was capable of murder of her whole squad?"

"I wasn't the only one," Kaidan said, raising his voice slightly, "We all thought she was guilty, there was all that proof. I mean, the jury was only out for an hour."

Khalisah let loose the grin she had been keeping in check; she was off camera and no one but Alenko could see it. She asked the question she knew would cut through Alenko's verbal palisade.

"Did Jane tell you she didn't do it?"

There, a crack in Alenko's confidence. Ms. Al-Jilani could hear the pieces of the man's defense falling down as he shifted back and forth.

"Yes."

"And how did you feel when you found out she was being exonerated?" Subtly Khalisah moved her index finger over the datapad in her hand to have the bot's camera zoom in on Alenko's face.

"That she was innocent?"

For several heart beats Kaidan didn't move. The color of his face bled out to a ghastly pallor, and under the unfiltered light of the bot his skin seemed pasty. He swallowed again and blinked for a few moments. Finally he gathered himself together to answer.

"I don't want to do this anymore."

Before Khalisah could say another word Kaidan walked away from the reporter and the bot. She watched as the Marine ran away, steadily striding towards the transport shuttle area. Ms. Al-Jilani tapped her datapad with her index finger again, stopping the recording. She didn't need to chase after Alenko. She had what she needed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter One: Shepard**

Detective Garrus Vakarian stepped through the threshold of the dragon's den. Despite the fact that the white walls of the office were clean of any blood and bones from previous victims, Garrus was aware of the rising death toll associated with this particular monster. Many a horrible battle had taken place in this room and each battle ended with the sound of the loser limping away with his life or —more often than not—the fatal snap of the dragon's jaws. Garrus was intimately familiar with the sounds; after all this wasn't his first time facing the beast's horrible maw. Sitting a few feet away from him was Garrus's fearsome foe—by the way his mandibles were set Garrus doubted he would be able to survive unscathed—Executor Venari Pallin looked furious; his glare demolished any questions the detective might have had about why he was being called in. Garrus was starting to wonder if there wasn't some truth beyond the office rumors. Though his knowledge of human mythology was minimal at best, he was sure there was some reference to fire breathing reptiles that could apply to his boss. Maybe Pallin's clan had a genetic mutation that allowed them to spout fire from their mouths, as a detective Garrus couldn't rule out the possibility. Looking at his boss under the glare of the fluorescent lights, he couldn't tell if it was the glint from the lighting that gave the illusion sparks off of the Executor's teeth or if his boss really had mystical powers of fire when he was in a rage.

Garrus had just come from C-Sec's interrogation room making sure his newest arrest, a volus smuggler named Khan Pi, was comfortable in the room's plush chair and steel restraints. The criminal had spent the last three hours leading the turian on an impromptu game of catch-me-if-you-can which covered all of the Zakera Ward. Garrus was sure the volus would demand to see his advocate soon, but that didn't shake the feeling of satisfaction from finally closing a three month long case, or the gratifying sensation of grabbing the small male in his claws and purposefully ruining his suit when Garrus finally caught him. Right now, his blood was singing from the rush of the chase and the feeling of sliding the cuffs into place tight on the pressure suit of the volus.

"Vakarian, do you mind telling me why I have a volus and his advocate in one of my interrogation rooms threatening to sue C-Sec?" Pallin's voice was so low that its timber made Garrus's mandibles ache.

"It's much to do about nothing sir, the evidence I have collected against him is rock solid. There's no way his advocate is going to be able to talk his client out of jail," Garrus suppressed the frown threatening to form on his face. Today was a good day in Vakarian's book and he wasn't going to let his boss rain all over his arrest.

"I don't give a krogan's lower left testicles if you have rock solid evidence," Pallin's mandibles flared as far as they could go, "If anything of what Khan Pi is claiming is true then he could have enough grounds to get all charges against him dropped. All because you can't follow simple procedures that even a turian child could understand."

"I did my job by keeping a drug dealer out of the wards," Garrus stated slowly. "Justice was finally served by throwing cuffs on Khan Pi."

"Your job? Was it your job to threaten Khan Pi with an assault rifle? If the report I have here in front of me is true, you," Pallin paused to pick up the datapad from his desk and read aloud, "advised the suspect on areas where he could be shot and still survive suit exposure until the suspect revealed the location of his supplies and contacts."

Pallin dropped the datapad on his desk like it was trash meant for the incinerator. Garrus remained still, keeping his silence as a shield against the older turian's accusations.

"You used physical force on a suspect to have him admit to charges laid against him," Pallin's jaw snapped out each word, "That's enough for his advocate to get him released from holding."

The suggestion of Khan Pi walking free rubbed Garrus like a sand spray against his bare scales—it was enough for Garrus to voice the words that had been building up in his throat, "Khan Pi confessed to not only procession of red sand, but being the administrator of the drug network the department's been trying to break down for months. What does it matter if I roughed Khan Pi up a little? I was able to collar the slimy bastard because of it."

Pallin shot up from his desk and leaned forward bringing his face inches away from Garrus, "You don't get it do you detective? We are Citadel Security. When you wear that uniform you represent the law. You don't get to break it whenever you feel like it just so you can grab the bad guys. I would think that your father would've taught you that already."

Garrus felt the blood in his veins rush along his temples and he was tempted to tell Pallin what he really thought about C-Sec's rules and red tape. How it stopped cops and detectives from cleaning up the streets and let trash like Khan Pi and Dr. Saleon—the black market organ doctor that Garrus _almost_ collared—free and able to victimize people as they pleased. However, the image of his father stopped him. How many times had Garrus faced his father's disappointed gaze on the vid phone? The older turian's sharp blue eyes clouded with pain and confusion on how his only son had once again broken the rules in order to arrest a suspect, rules that earned Garrus's father the status as a C-Sec legend and Citadel hero.

Pallin sighed—the sound of twenty years as a C-Sec officer coming deep from his chest—and leaned back to sit down in his chair. The anger in his body was still there, visible in the tension of his mandibles and the muscles of his neck, but it was muted by a sense of fatigue. Pallin had always sought ways to keep the young turian in line. There was no arguing Garrus's effectiveness in making arrests—something the Executor secretly took pride in—but Garrus skirted the line between the justice and corruption too often for Pallin to feel comfortable. There had been several incidents where Garrus's methods lead him straight to Pallin's office.

"I'm assigning you a partner," Pallin said, "A new recruit from the Alliance. Since I know how you like high profile cases you'll love the human that the Alliance is hoping to dump off on us."

Garrus's brow furrowed, "You can't mean the Alliance Marine that has been blasted all over the extranet."

"Jane Shepard will be entering the Investigation Department of C-Sec in the next two weeks and you, Vakarian, will be her partner," Pallin looked up at Vakarian with a hard stare, "Make no mistake Garrus, this is your last chance. If anything goes wrong with Shepard it will be on you. If she makes one mistake—one small slip—the blame will be on you."

"You want me to babysit her," Garrus nearly growled, "So I won't be able to make any more problems for the department."

Pallin smiled; his sharp teeth gleamed under the office light, "I'm glad you understand your assignment. Now go, I have to make a solid case against the mess Khan Pi and his advocate are making."

Garrus turned and walked out without another word. He'd just been eaten up and spat out. Turns out the nickname the human officers had given Pallin had been one hundred percent accurate.

The Investigations Division door slid open and in walked two agents, a salarian from the Network Division and a turian from the Special Response Unit.

Garrus had been glancing up at the door out every time it chimed today, but immediately regretted the action once he saw who walked in. Of course, he had been expecting this. After all, today was the day he was getting his new partner.

"Hey Vakarian," greeted Morlan.

Morlan had been with C-sec for many of his years and not once did the salarian graduate from being just a sidekick to another agent. Every time Garrus saw the salarian's face in the office or amongst the crowd in the C-Sec lobby he thought, _crony_.

Morlan walked up to the right side of Garrus's desk, "Have they given you your new partner yet?"

A deep chuckle to Garrus's left came from Morlan's keeper Acilius, a turian bearing white tattoos on his face and carapace. The markings created the illusion of a fierce mask on his dark grey skin, heightening the bright yellow of the turian's eyes and the shadows of his face. He had stopped right in front of Garrus's desk blocking his view of the door. The turian looked down at Garrus, the upward curve of his eyes indicating his amusement.

"I can't believe the Executor didn't think of this sooner to rein you in." Garrus kept his face blank of the annoyance he felt at the comment.

"Garrus the Lone Gunman. Coming to the rescue and leaving a sloppy mess for the Executor." Morlan recited the familiar slogan some of the officers from other departments of C-Sec snidely whispered to each other whenever the detective was called into Pallin's office.

"Nice to know you guys have enough time to gossip while on the job." Garrus leaned back in his seat to get a better view of Acilius.

He knew it was at the taller turian's behest that he was being paid a visit today. Acilius took particular pleasure in goading Garrus about his numerous screw ups—recently about what kind of partner would be a perfect match for the young turian—due to the unpleasant past between them. Garrus noticed, not for the first time, that Acilius's face tattoos marked the turian as being from a space colony not far from their home planet Palaven and he wondered if the bad blood of the old civil wars was still lingering in the present world.

"It's not gossip when it's plastered all over the extranet. Wasn't it just a few weeks ago that human reporter covered a story about a C-Sec chase in Zakera Ward?"

"Of course, let's not forget the highlight of Vakarian's career," Acilius gave Garrus a wink and the detective restrained the urge to gouge out the older turian's eyes, "The Dr. Saleon case that caused such a fuss with the Council."

Acilius waited, watching Garrus's silent agitation to see if he would rise to the bait. Garrus wondered if the turian would ever let go of his grudge against him; he could understand the reason why Acilius disliked him; half of the Investigations Office disliked Garrus's rebellious way of taking down suspects. His understanding still didn't quell the urge to want to headbutt the other turian from time to time.

"I heard that the human ambassador tried to deny Shepard entrance into C-Sec," Morlan cut in; showing off in the usual salarian way by revealing how much intelligence he knew, "But the human's advocate was able to shut him up."

"Guess now you'll have your hands full babysitting a criminal rather than catching one," Acilius's small smile said how much he was enjoying Garrus's predicament.

"From what I've read, Shepard was exonerated from her sentence," Garrus swallowed the growl creeping up his throat.

"Yes," Morlan added "Sentenced to twenty-seven counts of murder along with military sabotage. All sentences were over turned in light of lack of evidence once the case was reopened."

"I heard your partner got a nice stack of credits along with her freedom," Acilius looked down to examine the tips of his talons of his left hand, "Makes an turian wonder why someone who had been locked up for twelve years would want to go into law enforcement."

"You don't have to wonder too hard Acilius. It's not like you're ever going to see that many credits in your lifetime," Garrus interjected, "I would appreciate it if you moved on from my desk. I have work to do."

Garrus picked up his datapad and closed his report. He opened a new file from the C-Sec database and started to search through the dossiers. He didn't bother looking up when he heard Acilius chuckle or Morlan get off his desk.

"Whatever you say, Vakarian," Acilius said "Just trying to help a fellow agent out."

"See you next time," Morlan added.

Talking together, the two left Garrus at his desk. Garrus shifted through files until he found the one he was looking for. Staring at the rap sheet Garrus skimmed over the information before his blue eyes stopped on the attached picture. Commander Jane Shepard looked like a typical youthful twenty year old human; a clash of hazel eyes, skin the color of browned butter and a distinctive hook in the human's nose line. In the picture Shepard's black hair was cropped short so that small curls of hair framed her face; her eyes stared straight ahead in a serious and level stare, mouth set in a straight line that projected a sense of confidence. The picture was taken from an Alliance portfolio before Shepard was convicted for her squad's murder on Akuze. Garrus wondered how her time in prison had changed her appearance.

Shepard had been going through C-Sec training the past few months. Since she had Alliance military training Shepard excelled all the physical tests. Garrus was personally impressed by the fact Shepard aced the written test for C-Sec. It was an accomplishment few turians—let alone humans—could boast. He heard the Council was disappointed when Shepard passed the test to become a detective. The Council and the Executor were hoping once Shepard got a taste of what C-Sec duty was like she would lose interest; a futile wish as Garrus doubted a person who was willing to go through C-Sec training would easily give up on her first job out of prison. Whatever the reason Shepard had for joining C-Sec, the higher-ups wanted the ex-Alliance Marine out as soon as possible.

The office door slid open again and this time Garrus heard Executor Pallin's rumbling voice. A moment later, in walked his superior with Jane Shepard dressed in the human version of the traditional blue C-Sec uniform. Superficially, Shepard's face still looked the same as it did in the Alliance picture, however her eyes were different. In the picture her eyes were clear and determined; like many new recruits, there was vision of a future in them. The present Shepard's eyes reminded Garrus of older battle-worn turian officers he served under; her eyes carried the weight of stories, not the kind you would tell another person over dinner, but the kind you tell after a bottle of turian spirits. Another difference—- one that could only be attributed to time—was the length of Shepard's hair; cut just below her ears and the front held back by two thin black hair accessory on each side, leaving Shepard's face unobstructed.

"And here is you're where your desk is. Right across from your partner," Pallin's voice cut Garrus's observation short.

Garrus stood up and nodded to the human. From this distance Shepard was only slightly shorter than he. She tilted her head up slightly to stare into Garrus's eyes.

"Garrus Vakarian, at your service," Garrus said.

Shepard smiled. "Nice to meet you, Detective Vakarian. Jane Shepard."

Shepard copied Garrus's nod rather than offering her hand. The turian wondered if Shepard read up on his species' customs and culture during her training or if she picked up the gesture from previous military experience. Satisfied with the exchange, Pallin gave the two their first assignment together.

"You're going to need to go down to the wards for this one," Pallin said. He brought up his omni-tool to transfer the file to their datapads. "There's been fresh activity down there by some of the local gangs. We think a new hot shot has come into power and has been fortifying his position with a few timely killings. Everything you need is in your datapads."

Garrus glanced at the datapad for a moment, reading the new information on a case he'd been following for the past few months (never hurt to be up to date on current open cases) and knew the area stated in the file well. He looked over at Shepard who was scanning the content of the file at a rapid rate. The Alliance file stated Shepard was earth born and joined the Alliance Navy when she got out of high school; also he knew Shepard lived in the 800 block of the Citadel and had only recently moved in, which implied the human would have limited knowledge of the majority of the Citadel. He wondered how Shepard would respond to the less human-friendly wards. Garrus blinked at the crisp sound of a datapad being put down on metal surface. Shepard was smiling at him, apparently ready to go.

"If you don't mind I'll drive. I know the area well and have been down there several times," Garrus said.

"By all means," Shepard replied. "After all, this is my first day on the job."

The two proceeded out the Investigation office to the C-Sec lobby. The lobby was predictably crowded with on duty agents and scattered groups of people who had come to grouse about personal business to officers. As Shepard and Garrus headed towards the elevator Garrus noticed heads turning and eyes staring in their direction. With all the extranet news blasts about Shepard's release from prison everyone on the Citadel—if not the entire galaxy—knew who human was. Shepard gave no indication of noticing how much attention the pair was getting, matching Garrus's long strides with an easy gait of her own. When they got into the elevator Garrus tapped in their destination in with a talon. He stood there silently next to Shepard as the gentle pull of the elevator started their ascent.

"Congratulations on passing the C-Sec test," Garrus shifted his weight from foot to foot.

"Thank you, Detective Vakarian," Shepard smiled, "Is this the part where you ask me why I wanted to join C-Sec?"

Garrus looked over at the human surprised by her candid question. Shepard's stare was assessing, but not hostile. He paused before answering, "I figured I would ask after I see how you handle the murder scene."

Shepard nodded, "I was planning on asking what you did to get stuck with me as a partner after we solved this case."

Garrus stared at the human female for a moment before smiling. Garrus didn't know what to make of Shepard yet, but he liked her blunt answer.

"Okay, I guess that's fair."


	3. Chapter 3 Take Out

**Chapter 2: Take Out**

The crime scene was protected by a single C-Sec agent and a locked seal. The turian on duty straightened his posture when he noticed Shepard and Vakarian walking towards him. He recognized Garrus first and his mouth and mandibles tightened as his fellow turian walked closer. The officer's stance changed from alert to stubborn defiance with the slight jutting out of the chin and bracing of the shoulders. Shepard was interested to know exactly what Garrus did to make his peers in C-Sec react to him with such resentment. Garrus seemed unaffected by the attitude; stopping in front of the agent he announced in a civil tone, "Executor Pallin gave us authority over this case. I'm here with my partner to investigate the crime scene."

At the word partner the officer glanced at Shepard for a long moment, his eyes widening when he recognized the ex-convict. Shepard smiled placidly at the officer, bearing his stare.

"Hi, I'm Detective Shepard. Do you mind if we enter the crime scene?"

"No ma'am."

The guard brought up his omni-tool, tapped a button with one talon and stepped aside once the seal on the apartment door turned green. As Shepard walked into the crime scene the guard's eyes followed her with a look that bothered Vakarian more than he thought it would. Though Vakarian didn't know what to think of Shepard yet, he didn't like the fact that other agents were treating his new partner with such open disrespect. Everyone in C-Sec treated the human like a new form of vorcha.

"Officer Turlin," The sharp clipped tones of Garrus's voice brought the guard's attention back to the detective before him.

"What you have learned from the neighbors of the deceased?"

Shepard paused in front of the doorway and smiled; she wondered if Garrus's anger was from the look the officer gave her or due to his babysitting role. Detective Vakarian had so far behaved very neutrally towards Shepard. Keeping himself distant, and polite. Their short exchange in the C-Sec elevator confirmed what Shepard suspected; the turian was waiting to see if she had the brains of a detective before he would offer any respect. While Shepard wasn't holding her breath for any sign of friendship from her new partner, she didn't want to start her new career with Vakarian as her enemy.

As the officer gave his report to her partner, Shepard entered the victim's home. The grey metal doors opened with a sucking hiss, a gentle intake of air from the door's contaminant countermeasures. She stepped into the living area, trying to distance herself from the sounds of her partner talking and the noise of the busy district. Shepard's gut quivered with anxiety; it had been so long since her last official mission. Despite the differences from C-Sec and the Alliance Marines, she felt the same pull towards civic duty that had appealed to her on Earth when she was barely eighteen. Before the Alliance Shepard lived in an old, broken down neighborhood with a lot of dead end streets. Shepard escaped one of those dead ends by joining the Marines. C-Sec enabled Shepard to live her life with only slight differences of what she did twelve years ago, before the trail. She was once again dressed in a uniform that symbolized a code of justice. The familiarity of her role settled her nerves and Shepard focused her thoughts on solving this case.

Looking around she noticed she was in a private living space-calling it an apartment would be retailer propaganda-there were two rooms to the space, the sleeping area and the common area where Shepard stood. The bodies were to her left next to a small couch that took up most of the space in the room. Only a small knocked over table and one fractured glass on the ground in a puddle of clear liquid indicated violence besides the dead bodies. Both victims were turian; one was laying face up in a pool of blue blood while the other closer to the door was laying face down. The sight of victim's bodies sent a thrill up Shepard's spine along with a slight wave of nausea. Sometimes in prison, if a convict was rude to the wrong person they'd be found just like these two bodies. In their cot or the shower area, bodies cold and blood beginning to stain the floor. Eventually the guards would come. Shepard walked closer and took out white safety gloves from one of her leg pockets. The elastic material fit snugly around the form of her hands and she resisted the urge to snap the lip of the glove against her wrist. An old habit that was as much for the pleasure of hearing the sound as for the momentary sting of pain.

She knew the forensic team had already swept the area; still she didn't want to spoil the crime scene by introducing new evidence. Even after twelve years of technological advancement some things still stayed the same. She walked to the puddle of clear liquid and squatted next to the cracked glass with her knees apart. Shepard bent her back forward a little; she rubbed a bit of the liquid between her fingers. Spreading her fingers apart revealed the liquid had evaporated. She brought both fingers close to her nose for an experimental sniff and didn't pick up any scents except the rubber material of her gloves. Shepard wrinkled her nose in puzzlement; she didn't know of any liquor that had no distinctive scent and evaporated quickly when heated.

Shepard turned away from the glass and focused on the turian lying face up. She paid attention to the details of the crime scene rather than concentrating on the startled expression on the turian's face. With her other gloved hand she touched the victim; the body was cold, a sure sign of death for a turian whose species' natural body temperature was higher than that of humans; the other sign of death was a circular hole in the middle of the turian's breast cavity. The edges of the turian's black tunic was singed and there was a sharp smell of metal that hung in the air around the body. Shepard knew turian biology had evolved so they sported a metallic exoskeleton, but the scent that was assaulting her nostrils was different. The smell was similar to the discharge of a heavy pistol.

Shepard adjusted the victim's head, turning it to face her. His yellow eyes were dull and the jaw and mandibles hung open. She leaned closer careful not to touch the blood. With an experimental sniff Shepard vetoed out the idea that the turian had been drinking; his mouth smelled vaguely of decay and leather. Shepard didn't see any bruising on the turian's neck, another blank box on her mental list of signs for a possible struggle. Shepard heard footsteps behind her and turned her head. Garrus stood over her, his eyes lingering on her for a moment before concentrating on the victim. His face leaked no emotion, distant from the death before him like a seasoned professional. Shepard wondered if her partner was unsettled by the two turians laying dead before him. All turians she knew held a certain level of pride about their species.

"The agent said nobody heard anything last night or earlier in the day. Not surprising, people who live in this area are known to mind their own business and keep their mouths shut," Garrus said with a small echo of the rumble characteristic of his species.

"Nobody wants to share the same fate as these two by talking to C-Sec," Shepard stood up and moved to look at the other victim letting Garrus to get a better look at the first body. He bent his tall frame to inspect the victim.

The second victim was dressed in a tan brown soft armor suit, the kind one would see for diplomats or lower businessmen like clerks. His arms and legs suggested the turian had either been walking away when he was shot or was ordered to give his back to the shooter. There was no evidence of struggle, similar to the first victim, except for the small singed hole through the victim's upper chest cavity.

"These two were having drinks with somebody," Garrus leaned down to put his face close to the victim's, "Smells like Apex C3."

Shepard's gives the turian an inquisitive look, "Some kind of turian vodka?"

"More like your human whiskey."

Shepard crosses her arms across her chest, "If they were having drinks then why is there only one cup?"

"Okay, so one person in the room is having a drink. It is unlikely it's the killer as the forensics state the only prints they picked up in the apartment were the two victims on the floor. It would be pretty sloppy for the shooter to leave his DNA on a cup when everything else is neat and tidy. "

"Do think this one of these two was one of the top drug hitters in the area?"

Garrus looks over the plain face of the victim again and then stood up to get a look at the second victim's face, "Neither look familiar nor does the bleeder's name ring any bells."

"You got his name?"

"You can get it by scanning the apartment door with your omni-tool."

"Huh," Shepard walked over the door and activated her omni-tool.

In a few moments her omni-tool gave her the citizen license information of one Aelianus Branas as well as the landlord of the apartment. Shepard stared at the information in glowing orange font. She recalled working with her omni-tool in the field when she was Alliance; watching the information scroll down on her omni-tool screen, Shepard could feel the years of her incarceration pressing down on her shoulders. She turned back to Detective Vakarian with her eyebrows raised.

"It's like living in the future. It's the one thing I still haven't gotten used to being out of prison. All the new functions and amplifiers that have come out for omni-tools are so," Shepard paused for a moment, "futuristic."

Garrus looked at his partner, his expression indicating he couldn't decide if Shepard was being serious or not, "The future?"

"Yeah, you know. Flying in space, contact with alien species. Something about flying jet packs to work," Shepard said while reading her omni-tool.

"Don't humans do all that now?"

Shepard looked up from her omni-tool to stare at Garrus; she couldn't be sure, but she thought she saw a twitch of his mandible hiding a smile.

"Well, yes," she admitted, "Everything except the jet packs. The jet packs were very important."

Shepard went back to reading Mr. Branas' citizen license, missing Garrus's small shake of his head. According to her records, Mr. Branas came from a turian colony to the Citadel 20 years ago. There was a personal shuttle serial number on his card and Shepard made a note to search it after they left the crime scene. Processing all the information Shepard started to mentally visualize what happened in the victim's apartment.

"Mr. Branas and his guest get an unexpected visitor," Shepard said, "There aren't any defense bruises on the body so it's someone he knows. He lets him in, maybe offers him a drink and they get to talking."

Shepard walked over to the victim looking at the knocked-over table and visualizing a scenario in her mind. "Something goes wrong, things get heated and the perp shoots Mr. Branas point blank in the chest."

Shepard turned to check with Garrus. She knew he had some doubts about her, so she felt relief when he nodded in agreement with her hypothesis. If she could convince Garrus of her skills as a detective it would make working in C-Sec a little easier. Shepard didn't have any illusions about her opposition to being in C-Sec. Her advocate, Liara T'soni, had managed to secure her a position in the Citadel because of her court settlement. Ignoring the fact that Shepard was probably one in a handful of human investigators currently at C-Sec, she hadn't started as a regular enforcement officer and worked her way up from the ground. Shepard couldn't blame C-Sec agents for distrusting her because she had bought her way into her position; in the Alliance military they called officers who were promoted into rank because a few hands were greased behind closed doors. Shepard wondered what slur they used in C-Sec.

"Judging from the shot in Mr. Branas's chest the perp couldn't have been a volus, hanar or an elcor. The angle of the bullet was straight meaning the perp had to be holding the weapon at arm level."

Shepard mimicked the position, standing with her right arm stretched out parallel to the floor. Her hand was fisted with her index finger out, mimicking the imaginary murder weapon. Garrus stood in front of Shepard and lined up her hand with his chest. Shepard blinked, uncertain for a moment with Garrus's participation, but the turian was watching Shepard patiently. Shepard stared at her hand and the location of Garrus's chest where the bullet hole should be; she frowned, and stepped closer until her index finger touched the smooth surface of Garrus's armor.

"If the perp shot Mr. Branas point blank in the chest then there would have been a bigger burn on his tunic," Shepard said, "There also would've been noise from the weapon being shot."

Shepard looked up to see Garrus looking down at where her finger was touching his armor. He looked up at her and raised his left brow. Shepard dropped her arm and took a few steps back.

"Sorry."

"The perp must've had a silencer on the weapon to mask the sound. That would explain why no one heard anything and the small burn on his clothes."

"So shooter came with the intent of killing Mr. Branas, and the second victim becomes an innocent casualty. Wrong place, wrong time."

Shepard walked around the common area going past the turian's body to where the bedroom area was. The doors were locked; the seal on the door was red. She turned to look at Mr. Branas's body. When the victim was alive he was standing facing the bedroom door.

"Since the perp came with the intention of killing Mr. Branas's, we can rule out manslaughter," Shepard mused aloud. "Was it just to kill Mr. Branas or was the perp coming for thing else?"

"You think the perp wanted something from one of the victims?"

Shepard smiled, "We all want something Detective Vakarian."

"And what is it that you want Detective Shepard?" Garrus said with a more pronounced cadence to his voice.

"I want a peaceful soul. With a peaceful soul I can spread joy and love to others."

Garrus blinked a few times, "Uh."

"But right now," Shepard looked at the bedroom door, "I want to see what's in Mr. Branas's bedroom."

Shepard looked back at Garrus and saw his annoyed look; his brows shifted down and his mandibles were stuck close to his jaw. Shepard wondered if Garrus was annoyed often. Turians had a gaze that was intense and predatory due to the pronounced eyes and straightforward stare. Fortified by military training, all the turians Shepard knew were able to give off a rapacious look when they wanted to. Or perhaps the species of the dead ruffled her partner's plated scales more than his cool attitude let on.

"I want to know what else the perp wanted from Mr. Branas besides his life."

Shepard brought up her omni-tool and unlocked the door seal using the C-Sec code provided in the file from Executor Pallin. There was a cheerful beep from the door before it slid open. The room was small and messy; there was a strange smell in the room; the scent was light, slightly oily and vaguely familiar. The mattress on the bed was slightly askew from the frame with all the sheets on the floor. A small corner desk was a mess of tech parts data pads and small electronic tools. On the floor was a broken portable terminal. The terminal was smashed in the middle, as if repeatedly crushed by a heavy object like a foot. Shepard squatted down and lifted up the small machine; several pieces of metal and plastic fell off.

She lifted the terminal higher for Garrus to see and asked, "You think the IT guys will be able to pull something off of this?"

Garrus shrugged and lifted his arm to try to scan it with his omni-tool. The orange glow of the screen made the blue sections of the turian's armor take a dark green shade. The omni-tool emitted an accusatory beep at Garrus letting Shepard know whatever data the terminal might have held has been destroyed. There was little hope the IT agents back at C-Sec headquarters would be able to pull anything off of the machine. Shepard set the terminal down and stood up. She carefully walked over to the desk to take a closer look at what kind of tools Branas was fiddling with. She felt something soft give way under her boot and paused; she looked down to see a big stain spreading underneath the white bed sheet on the floor.

Crouching down she picked up the corner of the sheet and slowly pulled it up. The smell was stronger closer to the ground and the scent clung to the back of her throat like phlegm. The sheet made a small slurping sound and gave a small amount of resistance before revealing what Shepard had stepped on; a box of food. It was stained from the grease leaving the container yellowed and limp. The food wasn't anything recognizable to Shepard, but with the smell crawling down her throat she remembered a turian food stall in the Zakera Ward that gave off the same aroma. Shepard leaned down to read the label off the box and saw the name Valentinus in red print.

"I think we have a lead on where Mr. Branas was seen last," Shepard said and pointed to her find.

Garrus stepped closer and sniffed, a small quiver of his flat nose. "I thought I smelled turian take out."

"You know the name Valentinus?"

"Yes, I often go there to eat lunch on breaks. Nice place, family run."

"Mr. Branas liked eat there too. We might want stop over there to see if they can tell us anything about our victim. He might have visited the restaurant with our perp."

"Good idea, we should also check out his registered shuttle."

Shepard smiled, "My thoughts exactly."


End file.
